'A totally different market': Home sales, prices continue to decline in Metro Vancouver
The number of home sales in the Vancouver area dropped further in September, as higher interest rates continued to cool the region's hot housing market.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver released data Tuesday showing a 46.4 per cent decline when compared to the same time last year and a 9.8 per cent decline from August. Compared to the 10-year average, they were down 37.5 per cent.
"We saw kind of a continuing trend that we've experienced in Metro Vancouver over the last six months, which is fewer homebuyers active in the marketplace and a bit of an uptick in the number of sellers listing their properties for sale," explained the REBGV's Craig Munn.
"What we're really seeing right now is a market that's in transition."
Potential buyers are being deterred by both the interest rates and the broader inflationary trends that are making everything from food to fuel more expensive in the province. That decrease in demand, Munn said, is increasing available supply and driving prices down.
The benchmark price for all types of property for September was $1,155,300. While that is slightly higher than it was at the same time last year, it represents an 8.5 per cent decline over the past six months, according to the board's report.
"For people looking to get into the market, it's an interesting time," Munn said. "We're coming out of a period where there were record sales and it was a difficult time for buyers. They didn't have much time to make decisions, there was a lot of competition over fewer homes for sale. It's a totally different market today."
However, Munn also notes that these numbers paint a picture of activity across the entire region and doesn’t capture what is happening in different cities and neighbourhoods. In the suburbs, where home prices spiked earlier on in the COVID-19 pandemic, the decline in price is in the double-digits. He cites Port Coquitlam, Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows as some examples.
"In a short period of time, some of those areas saw the largest increases in pricing and now we're seeing there's not as much stickiness perhaps to it," he said.
Both buyers and sellers, Munn said, will have to consider how to adapt to the changing conditions.
"It's really critical for individuals to look at their own individual circumstances, work with their Realtors do their homework to understand how today's conditions might benefit them or where there might be some risks that they need to take into consideration."
The full report form the REBGV is available online.
With files from CTV Vancouver's Spencer Harwood
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
RCMP uncovers alleged plot by 2 Montreal men to illegally sell drones, equipment to Libya
The RCMP says it has uncovered a plot by two men in Montreal to sell Chinese drones and military equipment to Libya illegally.
Government agrees to US$138.7M settlement over FBI's botching of Larry Nassar assault allegations
The U.S. Justice Department announced a US$138.7 million settlement Tuesday with more than 100 people who accused the FBI of grossly mishandling allegations of sexual assault against Larry Nassar in 2015 and 2016, a critical time gap that allowed the sports doctor to continue to prey on victims before his arrest.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Man wanted in connection with deadly shooting in Toronto tops list of most wanted fugitives in Canada
A 35-year-old man wanted in connection with the murder of Toronto resident 29-year-old Sharmar Powell-Flowers nine months ago has topped the list of the BOLO program’s 25 most wanted fugitives across Canada, police announced Tuesday.
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.